GOVERNMENT INDEXES AND INDEXING

The field of Government publishing is a wide one, albeit there are fewer signposts to guide the uninitiated than in any other branch of the publishing world. I, therefore, propose to take as my principal theme a survey of those bibliographical aids which contribute to a better appreciation of Government publications and which help us to cope in some measure with the enquiries which beset us as part of our normal daily routine. In doing this I am fully aware that at the Aslib Conference last year, Mr. W. Cox, of H.M.S.O., covered much of this ground and dealt with it with an authority I cannot claim. When I read his paper, I was struck by the amount of detail he compressed into it, but I had the feeling that his presentation was too one‐sided. He, quite naturally, spoke from the official side, the publisher‐angle—today I want to approach the field of Government publishing from the user‐angle.